If my father knows that I can feel his leaking emotions, he doesn't let it show. His expression is cold, but his deep sadness tells me otherwise. I don't know what to make out of it. I have to find refuge in the minds of my partners to calm down.
I don't have much appetite, but I obediently eat everything Gotrid put on my plate because my father is watching me with narrowed eyes. It's quite irritating and, honestly, too late for him to act all fatherly towards me, but something tells me that he won't show me the Nebula research facility unless I finish my breakfast.
"Let's go then," he stands up when my plate is empty, ignoring the fact that some people sitting around the table are still eating. Do the Divementis also have this stupid etiquette rule that when their sovereign stops eating, everyone else must immediately stop as well?
Nevertheless, the Divementis Emperor tells us to follow him so we do. He leads us outside which is highly unusual for me. If I don't count my regular flying sessions during which I'm strictly forbidden to land, I never really left the Draconian Embassy. We're not in the heart of Prague anymore, though, I need to get used to the fact. This is the Divementis base and all the buildings here belong to them.
It turns out that the research facilities are in a different part of the complex and we were accommodated in the residential quarter. As a result, we have to walk quite a bit, but I don't mind because there's so much to see.
"How are you keeping this place hidden?" Liana asks, amazed. "It's huge."
"Officially, these premises belong to Nebula Corporation," Nyx explains more than willingly. "We pay taxes and operate as any high-profile IT company would. This place looks like a normal company complex from the outside. Naturally, we're using our technology and our mental abilities to conceal any traces of alien presence."
That piques my interest so I spread my consciousness to see if I can find any mental barriers. Wouldn't that be incredibly demanding for the casters I wonder? Can the Divementis use something similar to our crystals to keep the shield running without their constant supervision? All I feel are countless Divementis minds all around, though, nothing that would resemble any sort of shield.
"Son, can you stop it, please?" my father scolds me. "You're making everyone more nervous than they have to be."
"You felt that?" I frown because I wasn't going after him. "Besides, I can't help it. How do you stop your mind from going after things that are new and are asking to be explored?"
"With proper training and discipline," he answers dryly. "Moreover, it's considered rude to be constantly checking the defences of others and trying to invade their privacy."
"I'm not invading anyone's privacy," I oppose. "It's just... I find this telepathic silence stifling. Don't you?"
"No, the Divementis don't leak their thoughts and emotions," he sighs, "but you grew up among humans who don't have a concept of mental guard so I understand why it must feel unnatural to you. Still, I ask you not to go after every Divementis you meet so aggressively just because they aren't presenting their feelings and thoughts on a silver plate."
"Aggressively?" I'm surprised by that word.
"You don't realise it because your telepathy is too powerful even in its current untrained raw state," he explains. "A common Divementis of average talent would have no defence against that if you really pushed. Our subjects have the deepest respect towards the Royal bloodline, but you might end up making our people afraid of you if you don't control yourself."
I shiver and clutch Erik and Gotrid's hands tighter. Making people afraid of me is the last thing I want even though I know that most humans are afraid of me already. We spend the rest of the journey in silence. Liana doesn't dare to ask another question and I'm desperately keeping my mind from reaching out.
I can feel that my father and Nyx are discussing something telepathically, but I don't dare to eavesdrop. I notice that while everyone is keeping a respectful distance from him, Nyx certainly isn't. Just what is their relationship?
I'm pretty sure that I've guarded my mind properly, but I still twitch nervously when Nyx suddenly turns back and looks at me. She probably didn't catch my exact thoughts, but she must have felt that I was thinking intensely about her. She smiles and despite her face being so alien, it's a warm and reassuring smile that makes me relax. There's something about her that makes me put my guard down.
"Love!" Erik warns me all of a sudden and grabs my right wing.
"Oh, sorry," I murmur, embarrassed. I unconsciously spread my feathered limbs. We've been walking outside for more than ten minutes now. It feels weird to use my legs instead of my wings when I can feel the breeze blowing into my feathers.
"You're so Celestial when it comes to flying, son," my father comments and he looks amused. "Frankly, we've always envied Celestials their ability to fly."
"What was your relationship with them? I mean us. I mean... you know, back then," I ask and I'm surprised to hear flattery from him.
"Diplomatic at best," he shrugs. "They kept to the skies and magic, we kept to technological advancement and telepathy."
"We were rivals of sorts," Nyx adds. "They were the only Draconian race we considered our equal."
"I want them to hear the full story, not just bits and pieces out of context," my father interrupts her. "Besides, we're here."
The building doesn't look impressive from the outside, just a normal administrative building Tokyo is full of. Nyx invites us inside and heads to the elevators. The elevators are pretty spacious, capable of transporting fifteen people at once but, in the case of Celestials, it comes down to ten and we have to squeeze. My father nonchalantly joins our ride.
"Only a Divementis can operate this elevator to reach the underground floors," he explains his presence and touches the button without any visible dial-up. Yet, a number pops up on a little display. "The labs are twenty floors underground," he announces.
"Thirty," I correct him, checking the number. Why is he lying about that?
"Right," he smirks.
"Love, you can read that?" Erik pokes me.
Only now do I realise that I didn't even think about the script. I just read it automatically without thinking.
"You keep testing me!" I protest.
"Better do it this way without forcing you," he shrugs. "I bet you're the type that doesn't perform well on formal tests."
"What would you know about that? You weren't there when I was growing up," I retort. "I couldn't even go to normal school because..."
"Love," Gotrid pushes me to his chest and pets my wings. "You just started leaking mana."
"I know that I wasn't there for you," my father's voice gets tense and I can feel another wave of sadness coming from him. Maybe even a hint of regret? "Do I have to remind you that I didn't know you existed? Amelia left before she discovered that she was pregnant so I couldn't read it in her mind."
I force myself to calm down, partly thanks to Gotrid's petting, partly because I have to admit that he's right about that. He had no idea that he had a son until recently. I don't like the fact that he dares to act fatherly towards me now, but it's true that his absence wasn't his fault. I wonder how different my life would have turned out if I had grown up among the Divementis.
You wouldn't have met me, Erik joins the hug.
Or me, Gotrid adds.
I catch my father studying our interaction intently. He's not just staring, he seems to be analysing us.
"What?" I frown and then I realise that I can actually ask about anything. He promised to answer all my questions. "Don't the Divementis bond with their partners?"
"We do," he nods. "The thing that fascinates me, and not only me, is the fact that you're able to bond with more partners at the same time."
"You can't do that?" I'm astonished.
"No, we're fiercely loyal to a single partner," he states. "We can bond with another one only when the previous partner dies or disappears for a long time and that entails years of excruciating grief and loneliness before the bonding wears off."
"Did you bond with Mom?" I ask directly. I want to know. I need to know. Was she truly important to him? I'm afraid that he won't answer, but he just takes a few moments.
"I did," he whispers.
I chew my lip. Why do I feel sorry for him? Even if he did experience mental anguish, he wasn't there for Mom when she was dying of cancer. He could have fought for their relationship even if the Divementis disapproved. The Divementis acknowledged me in the end, surely, they could have made an exception for Mom.
"Is Nyx your new partner then?" I decide to ask without mercy even though I can feel that it's a sore topic for him.
"What?" he raises his eyebrows. "Oh, gods, no, Nyx is my sister."
That information lands heavily and leaves me speechless for a few seconds. W-wait! So... does that mean? She's actually my...?